Many of you will have seen the letter doing the rounds that was issued yesterday by SAHA. The WPHU Executive have had discussions on this and the decision has been made to allow the league to continue this week. The situation in terms of COVID-19 infections in the WC is very different to that of other Provinces where there has been a substantial resurgence in number of infections, which is what prompted the decision by other Provinces to halt their leagues temporarily.
We will assess the COVID-19 stats on a weekly basis and make decisions based on what the numbers look like.
While the Covid-19 numbers are concerning and have been on the increase over the last 3 weeks, none of the cases that we are aware of, can be traced back to playing / practising hockey.
It is our social behaviours that are of more concern when it comes to the well-being of our hockey players. We therefore urge all players to exercise caution in this regard. Let us not have social gatherings just for sake of having a good time post matches. Let us adopt the behaviour of arrive play and go home.
Please note that each club and venue remains responsible for COVID-19 screening protocols at their venue (as per SAHA’s return to play documents). We also urge you to please engage with your membership around doing the responsible thing when it comes to isolating and/or testing should a player show any COVID-19 symptoms or have been in direct contact with a COVID-19 positive case. Players must notify their coach or club management immediately of the details this regard. Please do not hesitate to contact us for advice in this regard should you not be 100% sure on how to deal with a particular situation.
Lastly, please be advised that UCT have suspended all sport. All UCT league fixtures for the next 2 weeks will be postponed to the 2nd half of the season.
Due to all the University postponements that need to be made up in round 2, if necessary we may need to extend the league beyond the “final date fixtures” if required to do so. This is something that we spoke the possibility of in our Council meeting earlier this year.
Kind Regards
Robyn Morgan